One of the greatest thrills about reading, for me, is to begin a new book and within the first few pages realize that it’s one of the best books I’ve ever read. I get a shiver and I breathe a sigh of contentment and just fall into state of near total euphoria. This book will reside on my bedside table for months or longer, so I’ll have it near to reread a favorite bit of dialogue, a particularly wonderful scene or simply experience the same heartfelt emotion it evokes in me one more time. I cherish these books. I live for these books. Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase is one of these books.
A staff member reviewed the book again in 2009 and wasn’t quite as charmed. That time, the book got a B-. Our reviewer wrote:
Ultimately, what brings the grade down to a B- for me is the feeling that Jessica has a lot of very unromantic work in front of her to ease both Dominick and Dain’s transition into emotional maturity. Clearly, many, many AAR readers would disagree with my assessment, but in my humble opinion Lord of Scoundrels simply attempts too much.
Many of our readers do disagree. The novel has been chosen as the #1 romance in our top 100 poll four out of the five polls. It won the RITA for best Short Historical Romance and has been translated into at least fifteen languages including Turkish and Vietnamese.
I asked AAR staffers what they thought of the book. Several adored it. Several did not. Most had read it–many consider it part of the mythical romance novel canon.
What do you think of Lord of Scoundrels? Do you love Jessica? (I do.) Think Dain is a dreamboat (or a douche)? Are there scenes that make you sigh with joy whenever you read them? (For me, it’s the meet over the pornographic watch that gets me every time.) Are there things in the book that make you want to hurl the tome against the nearest wall? Have you never read and never will or do you read it again and again?
We want to know your thoughts/feelings about Lord of Scoundrels. And, thanks to our generous friends at Avon, we’ve got gifts for some lucky commenters. We’ll be giving away two signed copies of Lord of Scoundrels as well as a selection of Ms. Chase’s prodigious backlist. In addition, for those on Twitter today, Avon is asking readers to share their thoughts on the book, memories about reading it for the first time, favorite scenes, favorite lines, anything! They will be giving away signed copies of the book randomly to folks using the hashtag #LOSlove.
So, dish away!
I pull this book out every year and visit again the world of Dain and Jessica. Would love to win!
Like many, I first read Lord of Scoundrels after seeing on the Top 100 poll. I loved it then and immediately read Loretta Chase’s whole backlist. This year I joined Audible and LOS was my first audiobook. If its possible, the book is even better mixed with the magic of Kate Reading’s voice talent. I think the beauty of the book is the solid characterization. Jessica is so mature and sensible and has such clear vision that she see right to the heart of the obnoxious Dain. The humour mixed with romance and angst is perfectly balanced in my opinion.
the book was wonderful until the random son was stuffed in.
Love LoS and Last Hellion. Along with Flowers in the Storm, my 3 favorite romances.
Can’t believe its been 20 years–I think I’ve been following AAR for every one of those years too.
While I will always feel the love for Lord of Scoundrels, it’s not my favorite by Ms. Chase. That would be a toss up between Don’t Tempt Me and The Last Hellion, both of which get reread more frequently than LoS.
I love this book. Dain’s reaction to Jessica giving him the icon always makes me tear up.
I guess I’m in the camp that liked LOS but have other Chase books that are favorites. Mine are The Last Hellion, followed by Lord Perfect.
I read Lord of Scoundrels and enjoy it but it is not my favorite. I will reread it some day because of the prologue and Bertie. I loved Mr. Impossible and The Last Hellion.
I first read Lord of Scoundrels as a result of it being rated so highly in the “”Top 100″” polls. My notes to myself say that “”I liked it but didn’t think it a true keeper the first time, liked it much more on re-read.”” Then I got the audiobook and realized that it is truly a very special book and deserves the high ratings it gets from readers. It also was the first Loretta Chase I read and have since read 17 more of her books, enjoying every single one from her late 1980’s traditional Regencies to her most recent historicals.
I love reading books by Loretta Chase but for some reason LOS is one of my least favorite by her. I love Captives of the Night and Lord Perfect they are in my top 20 but I just don’t feel the love for LOS.
I love many of Loretta Chase’s books but LoS was just “”meh”” for me. I have even reread it to try to get the magic that most people see but it just wasn’t there. Now, don’t get me started on Mr. Impossible and Lord Perfect. Those two are my favorite by Chase but also both in my top ten of all romances. This is one of the things I love about books is that everyone brings their own “”baggage”” (for lack of a better word) to every book their read. I do not think there is any book that is universally loved, although LoS does seem pretty close.
Lord of Scoundrels is one of my favourite romance novels. Yes, it’s in my Top 10. I do love Jessica as well as Dain. Both characters have got something interesting and different. Some scenes are unforgettable -the one with the glove in a café, or the kiss in the rain. OMG, I just love them.
I don’t usually reread romance novels, but this is one of those books that I’ve read several times.
I was very late to the party on Lord of Scoundrels. Kept seeing it at the top of everyone’s all time list but never got around to reading it. Then last year, bought the audiobook and loved it. This 20th anniversary discussion caused to me to buy the ebook this morning. Oh, boy! Oh, boy!